WATCH: Cancer Patients React to Getting Funny, Surprise Makeovers

French nonprofit cancer charity the Mimi Foundation told 20 cancer patients they would give them a makeover. All they had to do was keep their eyes closed till it was finished. Of course, when they opened them, the patients expected to see themselves looking glamorous, you know, how you do when you get a makeover, but what they saw was God-awful.

I know it sounds mean, but the whole thing was done to lift the patients’ spirits, allowing them to, according to a press release, “forget their disease, if only for a second.” Seems like it worked. The release goes on to say that, “Within a second, smiling faces were seen all over the room. At that very moment, cancer did not exist for the family members either.”

The project has been compiled into a book, which you can learn more about/buy here, but there’s nothing quite like watching live footage of the big reveal. Check out the video below. The first 2 minutes or so is basically a set up. You’ll have to skip ahead to see the best parts.